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Class _Ly^'^^_ 

Book ' O 7" 

Copyright ]^"__ 

COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 







"The Eternal Question" 



Association 
Advertising 



Bv H. W. Stone 



Portland, Oregon 






Copyright, 1912 
H. W. Stone 



CCU343975 



Second 
Limited ^Edition of 

^'Association Advertising" 
of Tv^hich this is 

No. . -•-- i- 



Preface 

This little book on a technical and 
professional subject is by an amateur 
for amateurs. It is not a manual 
on advertising. It does not claim to 
be an authority. It is a talk by a 
Young Men's Christian Association 
Secretary to his fellows. 

My education in advertising has 
consisted of learning to set type, 
taking sketching for a few weeks, 
reading, about ten years ago, a book 
by Charles Austin Bates on advertis- 
ing (Mr. Bates might not feel compli- 
mented with my distortions), and 
twenty-two years grinding away at 
the job. 

I am indebted to my co-workers 
on the Executive Staff of the Port- 
land Association for many paragraphs 
and ideas in the book ; in fact, this is 



like almost any piece of work that 
any man on the Portland force does 
— it is sure to be largely the result of 
the co-operation of the other men. 

If this book has any attractive- 
ness I feel it is largely due to the 
cartoons made by Mr. J. W. Ben- 
gough of Toronto, who has been in 
Oregon for several weeks helping in 
a tax reform campaign. I have be- 
come very much attached to Mr. 
Bengough and appreciate the great 
service he is rendering to humanity 
with his crayon and pencil in fighting 
for temperance and just taxation laws. 

The references to commercial ad- 
vertisers made in the book are entirely 
without their knowledge or consent, 
and are used only for reasons of illus- 
tration of the text. The same is true in 
respect to mentioning by name some 
of my brethren in Association service. 

H. W. Stone. 



I 

Need of Advertising 

MOST of the larger Associa- 
tions of America have 
buildings and equipments that 
will accommodate a larger mem- 
bership than they have at the 




'Some secretaries spend most of their time kicking the town' ' 

7 



present time. This is inexcus- 
able, since all the cities have 
many times the number of young 
men who need the privileges any 
Association with the best facilities 
can take care of. This little book 
seeks to help solve this problem 
by a general talk on advertising. 

If an Association does not have 
all the members it can take care 
of, the trouble is not with the 
young men, nor the weather, nor 
the political party in power — but 
with the Secretary and the way 
he advertises. 

If an Association does not have 
as much money as it needs ninety- 
nine chances out of a hundred the 
trouble is not with the stinginess 
of the people of the town — but 
with the advertising and the poor 
work of the Secretary. 

8 



Some Secretaries spend most of 
their time kicking the town. This 
is poor advertising. One of the 
best ways to advertise an Associa- 
tion is to show that the Associa- 




"The Y. M. C. A. is a sort of jack-screw under the town" 

tion is really a great booster — in 
other words, that the Y. M. C. A. 
is a sort of jack-screw under the 
town and all that is needed is a 
few more members and money to 

9 



keep the screw turning to lift the 
town to a constantly higher level. 
Some thoughtless man is sure 
to say that if a splendid building 
with every equipment and offer- 
ing all the manifold priv- 
ileges of a modern Asso- 
ciation does not attract 
the young men without 
resorting to extensive ad- 
vertising it proves the 
young men do not want 
the Association privi- 
leges. It proves nothing 
of the kind. It may sim- 
ply mean that the bricks 
of the building have not 
been magnetized and Y. M. C. A. 
advertising is placing a magnet 
in the Association structure to 
draw the boys and young men of 
the city. 

10 




It is valueless for an organiza- 
tion or a city to provide a build- 
ing or the privileges of an Asso- 
ciation unless these advantages 




"Y. M. C. A. advertising is placing a magnet in the Associa- 
tion structure to draw the boys and young men of the city' ' 

are constantly MADE KNOWN to 
the boys and young men of the 
town — this "making known" is 
Association advertising. 

11 



The real question is not whether 
the young men WANT what the 

Association o f - 
f ers, but whether 
they OUGHT TO 
HAVE what the 
association has to 
give. If the man- 
agement really 
believe in their 
work and mis- 
sion it is their 
business to see 
that the boys and 
young men of the 
city partake of 
the advantages of 
the Association. 
Sometimes the 
taste for Asso- 
ciation privileges will have to be 
cultivated, but if a business cor- 




"That very few cared for 
when it was first tasted, 
kept talking about its 
charms so continually 
that it gets into every- 
body's mouth" 



12 



poration can put on the market a 
gum with a flavor Uke ''spear- 
mint" that very few cared for 
when it was first tasted, then keep 
talking about its charms so con- 
tinually that it gets into every- 
body's mouth and is sold by the 
carload, we can be sure that if 
the charms of the Association 
were only proclaimed more per- 
sistently they would be used by a 
constantly increasing proportion 
of the young men of our cities. 

The fact that the Association in 
some cities has a sort of monop- 
oly of such privileges as a gym- 
nasium, swimming pool, or night 
school, is no reason why the As- 
sociation should not advertise 
these very privileges continually. 
There is only one railroad up and 
down the Pacific Coast (the 

13 



Southern Pacific), but it is ever- 
lastingly advertising, not to at- 
tract business from other lines, 
but to "create business" and to 
start people to thinking about 
taking a trip from the dust of 
California to the cool evergreen 
valleys of the Pacific Northwest, 




"The Southern Pacific is everlastingly advertising" 

14 



or from the rains of the North 
to the sunshine and orange groves 
of the South, 

State Universities and Agricul- 
tural Colleges that have no real 
competitors in their field, believe 
that they have such good "wares" 
to offer that they are finding it 
advantageous to advertise more 
and more. One of the strong 
pieces of advertising literature 
that has come to my attention this 
season is from the Oregon State 
Agricultural College on "Dignify- 
ing the Industries." 

Some one has said before read- 
ing this far that the best way to 
advertise an Association is to do 
such a good work that the work 
will advertise itself. This is 
only half a truth and there- 
fore a decided error, for if the 

15 



work is good, that is the very 
reason it should be advertised the 
hardest; in fact, good work is the 
only kind worth advertising, and 




'*Mr. Fels sees that the magazines, papers and fences of North 
America cry aloud the virtues of his soap" 

the better the work the more it 
should be advertised. 

No one questions that Fels 
Naptha soap is a good article 
and satisfies those who buy it, 
and of course many users tell 

16 



their friends of its merits, but Mr. 
Fels, though he has a pile of 
money and spends most of his 
time in England pushing tax re- 
form throughout the world, sees 
that the magazines, papers and 
fences of North America cry 
aloud the virtues of his soap. So 
if an Association is doing a good 
work and has a satisfied member- 
ship that is a strong reason that 
it should advertise. 

If an Association is run down 
the first thing is to get something 
going, a very easy thing to do 
these days on the strength of the 
letters Y. M. C. A., because thev 
have been so well advertised 
throughout the nation, and then 
begin to advertise. In running a 
newspaper James Gordon Ben- 
nett, Sr., said the important thing 

17 



was to "get the news and then 
make a dom fuss about it," so 
with a run-down Association the 
thing to do is to get some activi- 
ties going and "make a fuss about 
it." That is Association advertis- 
ing. 



18 



II 

What Is Association 
Advertising? 

THERE is no mystery about 
advertising any more than 
there is about sawing wood. 
When I was a boy, I had to saw 




I had to saw all the wood for the family' 

19 



all the wood for the family. Be- 
fore getting down to work, I used 
to stand around and work out a 
lot of different theories about the 
best methods of sawing wood; 
but when I finally got the wood 
ready for the stove, I simply 
placed it on a buck and kept push- 
ing the saw back and forth. The 
way to do Association advertising 
is to keep pushing the Association 
opportunities back and forth be- 
fore the eyes of the young men 
of the city, and the membership 
will keep piling up. 

Association advertising is to 
state in an attractive and definite 
way just what the Association has 
to offer and what it costs. 

Advertising an Association may 
consist of many things — such as 
writeups in the daily papers, an 

20 



electric sign on the top of the 
building, the way the front steps 
are cleaned, a fifty-thousand cata- 
log issue, the way the Secretaries 
keep their shoes shined, or a card 
in a street car; but in this book 
we will treat principally of those 
kinds of advertising which are 
placed under the head of "Publi- 
city.- 



21 




"The outcome of the final vote on the Lloyd-George Budget 
in the House of Commons" 



22 



Ill 

Good Association 
Advertising 

GOOD Association advertising 
is giving the facts about the 
working of the organization in 
an entertaining way. These facts, 
if properly presented, will be of 
intense interest to young men. 
Many Secretaries fail to under- 
stand that they have in the mod- 
ern Association, news of absorb- 
ing interest to the live young men 
of the city. 

It is of far more interest to the 
average young man to know 
where he can go swimming three 
times a week in a marble basin, 
larger than six box cars, at a cost 

23 



of less than 8 cents a time, than 
to know what was the outcome of 
the final vote on the Lloyd George 
budget in the House of Commons. 




"They would be falling over each other to get to the 
Membership Secretary's desk" 

These news items and facts about 
the work of the Association ought 
not to be allowed to become stale 
by repeating them in the same 
way all the time. 

24 



The average modern Associa- 
tion has been given a wonderful 
lot of good things, greatly appre- 
ciated by young men, in the way 
of gymnasiums, swimming pools, 
laboratories, bowling alleys, run- 
ning tracks, camera rooms, club 
features of all kinds; and if the 
young men of the city only 
KNEW about the advantages of 
this equipment and the activities 
that should be going on, they 
would be falling over each other 
trying to get to the Membership 
Secretary's desk. 



25 




"1,000,000 Association Members in North America" 



26 



IV 

Big Possibilities 

THE possibilities of a Young 
Men's Christian Association 
have never yet been conceived. 
There seems to be no Umit to the 
growth and development of our 
work. We have sounded the 
slogan of ^1,000,000 Association 
members in North America." This 
means to almost double our mem- 
bership, but It will be done. 

Twenty-five years ago who ever 
dreamed of such great institu- 
tions as Los Angeles, Kansas City, 
Detroit, the larger branches in 
New York and Brooklyn, as well 
as many others that might be 
mentioned, to say nothing of 

27 



what Montreal, Toronto, Cleve- 
land and Boston will be when in 
full swing in their new plants. 













"New plants" 



We may go on adding and build- 
ing up departments, for society 
believes in us today, if we can 
only get the business. It is our 

28 



job to reach boys and young men 
and, by a process that we call 
Association work, bring them un- 
der the influence of the teachings 
of Jesus and cause them to take 
Christ as their Lord. One of the 
modern ways to get this "busi- 
ness" is to advertise persistently. 



29 




A secretary should take time to 
prepare advertising 



30 



Preparing Association 
Advertising 

PEOPLE read advertisements 
much more these days than 
they used to; they have formed 
the habit, and have found out that 




'Some secretaries honestly think that they have not time to 
see that their Association is properly advertised" 

31 



it pays, for advertising is business 
news. If an Association wants 
"business" it must give the news, 
that is Association advertising. 




"George Warburton finds time to go fishing" 

Some Secretaries honestly 
think they have not time to see 
that their Association is properly 
advertised. Most Secretaries find 
time to do whatever they are most 
interested in. I understand 

32 



George Warburton finds time to 
go fishing, Wilbur Messer to play 
golf, and Knowles Cooper to 
make "packs'' of speeches. 

Advertising should never be 
dashed off in a hurry, but ought 
to be planned and worked over as 
Mott is said to grind over his ad- 
dresses. A set time each daj^ or 
week should be given to advertis- 
ing the Association. It is not such 
a hard or wonderful thing to pre- 
pare good advertising; it simply 
requires hard work, thought and 
application. 

For a Secretary to say that he 
has not time to attend to adver- 
tising is simply another way of 
saying that he cannot do his work, 
for advertising is today an im- 
portant part of the work of every 
successful Secretary. 

33 



Every employee should know 
all about what is going on in 
every department of the Associa- 
tion so he can, as it were, be a 
"walking advertisement" and be 
able to answer any question any 
time, anywhere about any phase 
of the Association work. 




'Penny wise and pound foolish" 



34 



VI 

Advertising Cost 

SOME Secretaries tell me that 
they would like to advertise 
the work, but that their Associa- 
tions cannot afford it. I usually 
answer that I do not see how they 
can afford not to. It occurs to 
me that it is a case of "penny 
wise and pound foolish." 

Others say they tried advertis- 
ing but that it did not pay. The 
probable trouble was that their 
advertising system was wrong. 

How to advertise and the 
amount to be spent must, of 
course, be determined by the size 
of the Association, the size it 
should and might be, the size of 

35 



the city, the present income, and 
what the income might reason- 
ably be expected to be if the maxi- 
mum volume of business were 
being done by the Association. 

If a moderate sized Association 
has a Night Educational Depart- 
ment with a budget like the fol- 
lowing: 

*An Educational Secretary $1,500 

Teachers 1,700 

Other expenses, including 

limited advertising .. 529 



Total .. $3,729 

Then this Association finds that 
it can enroll about 300 students 
without newspaper advertising 
and these students pay in class 
fees $2483, leaving a deficit of 

*This budget is not an estimate by the author but is made 
up from the average of the eleven North American Associa- 
tions with between 300 and 400 different students in their 
Night Educational Departments. These eleven Associations 
had 3,864 students or an average of 351 to each Association. 
They spent $48,005 on their educational work or $12.43 per 
student, and received in class fees $33,224 or $8.61 per student. 

36 



$1246. If by spending $300 in 
display advertising in the daily 
papers 100 more students can be 
secured, bringing in $861 addi- 
tional class fees, the deficit would 
be only $685, and in addition 
there would be, of course, the 
membership fees from the 100 
members to help on the "over- 
head'' charges of the Association. 
This display advertising could 
likely be secured for one-half or 
less than list rate. Daily papers 
in most cities will make such a 
rate to the Associations. It is no 
better rate than that given to the 
large department stores. The 
only difference is that they take 
a great deal more space than the 
Association can afford, but they 
do not pay any more per inch. 
At the same time (although it 

37 



need not be asked) it will almost 
be sure to cause the papers to give 
more liberal reading notices 
about the "great educational 




'There'is much'to be gained by gettinglchummy 
with the press" 

work" being carried on by this 
Association. There is much to be 
gained by getting chummy with 
the press. 

A similar illustration could of 
course be made of the Boys' or 

38 



Physical Departments, and again 
a like illustration could be made 
of the value of thorough cata- 
logue or window card advertising. 
I know of many Associations 
with a good work, good buildings, 
good Boards of Directors, good 
employed staffs, that are a little 
on edge because they seem to 
have a small current deficit each 
year. They simply need a plus 
mark after their good work. 
Their cash book looks something 
like this: 



Receipts 
Memberships 
Dormitory receipts 
Subscriptions 
Class fees 
Locker rents 
Other sources 

Total receipts 
Deficit .. ,. 



Total 



Expenses 

32 General Salaries .. 25 

20 Fuel, light, water .. 10 
8 Educational Dept. .. 7 

15 Religious 3 

2 Physical 14 

21 Boys 8 

— Employment .. .. 8 

98 All other expenses .. 15 



.. 100 



Total .. .. 100 



39 



Now what is needed is just a 
little more and better advertising 
to change the 2 per cent deficit 
into a 2 per cent surplus that will 
permit the securing of the contin- 
ually needed additional equip- 
ment and keep the Association 
supplied with a little more than 
barely absolute necessities. 

It takes some nerve to pay out 
money for advertising when an 
Association is running behind. 
Of course an Association should 
save money everywhere it can. 
Begin by stopping the issue of a 
lot of little circulars that half the 
time never get circulated, cut off 
all the ads you have ever run in 
programmes or "souvenirs," and 
withdraw all your ads from dinky 
little papers. Don't think that a 
paper is high priced because it 

40 



charges one dollar an inch, and 
another cheap at ten cents. It is 
circulation that brings results, 
and it is results that count. Be- 
gin pushing on the old main As- 
sociation lines of the work of the 
Gymnasium, Educational Classes, 
Swimming Pool, Shower Baths, 
Sunday Meeting, giving them a 
new twist, then plan a campaign 
of advertising. Don't depend on 
some "expert.'' "Put not your 
confidence in princes." 

Trust in the Lord, believe in 
your town, your Association ac- 
tivities, and advertise. 

Some Secretaries seem to be- 
lieve that the only good advertis- 
ing is expensive printing; where- 
as, the most expensive pieces of 
Association printed matter that 
have come to my attention I be- 

41 



lieve were very poor advertising, 
for the reason that anyone look- 
ing at the embossed cover, deckel 
edged paper, and many tone ink 
impressions would be thinking of 
the attractiveness of the printing 
instead of the attractions of the 
Association's features. 



42 



VII 

Newspaper ^ Write- Ups'' 

THE American newspaper is 
the greatest advertising ma- 
chine ever invented. Other forms 
of advertising are good some 




"Starting across the contiuent in an ox cart" 

times. The daily newspaper is 
always effective if the news and 
display advertising is handled 
half way right. For an Associa- 

43 



tion to neglect to use the news- 
paper and issue a lot of little leaf- 
lets is like a man today starting 
across the continent in an ox cart, 




'Newspaper advertising is more penetrating than 
a mustard plaster'^ 



instead of in a Pullman sleeper. 

The great value of the daily 

newspaper over all other forms 

of advertising is that it gets into 

44 



the hands of practically every- 
body, A newspaper is like air; 
it goes into every home, office, 
store and workshop of the entire 
community. Newspaper advertis- 
ing is more penetrating than a 
mustard plaster. When an Asso- 
ciation officer prepares copy for 
a little folder or circular the work 
is only one- tenth done; the big 
job is to get the printing into 
hands that will read it. With the 
paper it is just the opposite; you 
turn in copy and the morning 
newspaper delivers your Associa- 
tion news or advertising while 
you sleep, and the afternoon pa- 
per will do the same while you go 
to the ball game. 

Papers, as a rule, are very lib- 
eral with Associations in the way 
of news space. They are coming 

45 



to know that a live Association 
Building is a news center. 

Every Association should sys- 
tematically plan to get the items 




"The morning newspaper delivers your Association news or 
advertising while you sleep" 

of the Association's doings into 
the daily papers. Papers cannot 
be expected to use bare announce- 
ments, and all Association items 
must be given a "news feature" 

46 



to be of value to the papers. A 
little study and attention will de- 
velop the ability to find how to 
make "news features" of many 
things that are not now used. 

In all Associations having a 
number of employees, one man 
should be assigned the duty of 
keeping in touch wdth the papers 
and giving them "stories'' of the 
Association activities. 

A certain Association has found 
it advantageous to employ one of 
the strong reporters of the lead- 
ing paper of the city to write 
news articles for all the daily 
papers. He visits the Association 
Building every day, calls on the 
heads of all the departments, puts 
a local "cracker'' on news articles 
appearing in "Association Men", 
digs around the Association Build- 

47 



ing and "develops" news many 
times from incidents and features 
that none of the Association of- 
ficers ever thought of using, much 
as the experts "develop" v^ater by 
digging down into the dry river 
beds of Southern California. 



48 



VIII 

Display Newspaper 
Advertising 

NOT many Secretaries seem to 
believe much in newspaper 
display advertising. There are tv^o 
main reasons for this. One is that 
not many have tried it. They are 
like a lot of the Godless fellov^s 
around town who do not believe 



Y. M. C. A. 

Corner Sixth and Taylor Streets 
Best Place for Boys and Men 

FEATURES 

Gymnasium 
Swimming Pool 
Educational Classes 
Library 

Reading Rooms 
Baths 
Dormitories 

Call or send for free illustrated 
catalogue giving full information 



A display ad. of little value 

49 



in prayer; they never tested it. 
The other is that the display ads 
they have run lacked the essen- 
tials of a good ad, viz., they did 
not state definite things and tell 
what they cost. A display ad like 
the one on the preceding page 
might have some value, but an 
ad giving definite information of 
costs, something like this, would 
be much more effective. 



Young Man 

Join the Y. M. C. A. 
This Week 

Only $19.00 for one year 
Some of the things you get for the 

$^ ^% /v/\ —Gymnasium 
B rw llil —Swimming Pool 
■ F —Library 

■ X 1 —Reading Rooms 
JL dm -Baths (Marble) 

—Dormitories ($9 
to $20 per month) 

Call or send for free illustrated cata- 
logue giving full information 



"Physical Department display ad.' 

50 



There is another place where 
Association newspaper display 
ads bring big results, namely, in 
advertising entertainments, such 
as an Association Minstrel Show 
or a Gymnasium Circus. 




Association minstrel show' 



Try and get the display on the 
same page with the entertainment 
and theater ads. It is of value 
to have such ads on the page in 
the paper where people look for 
entertainments. Of course, it 
hardly needs to be said that this 

51 



advertising, like circus advertis- 
ing, should not be too modest. 

Also try and have your enter- 
tainment listed wherever the pa- 
per gives a little daily mention of 
the entertainments of the day. 



5U^ 



^ ^ op Auu_ 

G-R-EATT SHOWS 



iKTHE 

50LATL 
5Y3TEH! 






ONLY* 







rTTVTVX 



"Like circus advertising, should not be too modest" 

This in many papers is at the head 
of some local column. 

It has been found of value to 
use display advertising one or two 
days immediately before some 
big event, such as the opening of 

52 



the gymnasium or the education- 
al classes, giving simply the date 
and the event. 

This ad was run this Fall v^ith 
good effect in four daily papers: 



Opening Exercises 

Y. M. C. A. 

Night Schools 

Monday, September 23 

7:30 p. m. 

Everyone invited 

Note: See list and cost of classes, page 5 
jof this paper 



The first time a display ad 
runs it is not likely to produce 
much effect unless it is very large 
and announcing a date event. 

Results come from repetition 
by keeping the Association oppor- 

53 



tunities flashing out from the 
pages of the paper day after day, 
as the electric signs flash out in 
the night. 

Do not use too many papers, 
but be sure to use the best ones. 
They have the circulation and it 
is circulation that counts. Bet- 
ter a small space in the leading 
paper than a larger space in an 
obscure publication. Advertising 
work is not done when the copy 
is turned in. The Board of Di- 
rectors, the Committees, the em- 
ployed staff, from janitors to 
General Secretary, must be ready 
for the increased business, to see 
that the Association goods are de- 
livered. 

An ad in a paper should be 
watched and changed from time 
to time. Note what effect differ- 

54 



ent forms or statements of the 
"story" have. 

Effort should be made to tabu- 
late just what results are secured 
by different ads and from differ- 
ent papers. Advertising theories 
do not count; it is men and boys 
that show the results. 




'Keeping the Association opportunities fashing out from the 

pages of the paper day after day as the electric 

signs flash out in the night" 

55 



-^ ^^"^"^ 7 ' ~^~7~^ " i-^ 




'Each year the Nile overflows the land of Egypt 
with blessing" 



56 



IX 

Catalogues 
Announcements 

ONCE each year the Nile over- 
flows the land of Egj^pt 
with blessing, so every Associa- 
tion, large or small, once a year 
should flood its community with 
some kind of an announcement 
outlining all the privileges and 
activities of the organization. 
This in a small Association may 
be only a little four page folder 
of five hundred or a thousand 
edition, while in a large city or- 
ganization a hundred thousand 
highly illustrated booklets may be 
printed. 

57 



There are two general policies 
in respect to this kind of printing, 
one is to depend on a separate 
circular for each department as 
Educational, Physical, Boys', Re- 
ligious, and sometimes a separate 
publication for each of the many 
courses of the Educational De- 
partment, and other single phases 
of Association work. The other 
to issue a general catalogue cover- 
ing the whole Association pro- 
gram, using in addition a mini- 
mum of leaflets or announce- 
ments to supplement the cata- 
logue. There are strong advo- 
cates of both policies. The secur- 
ing of strong departmental heads 
seems to tend to developing the 
first policy. I believe in the sec- 
ond method of publicity for the 
reason that the statement of the 

58 



work in its entiretj^ in a strong 
way is sure to be much more im- 
pressive than any one phase of 
the work. This, of course, does 
not mean that it may not be of 
advantage to issue special an- 




*'Va4st businesses have been built up by the use 
of omnibus catalogues" 



nouncements. For instance, if an 
Association conducted a Plumb- 
ing School and had issued a spe- 
cial circular about this Plumbing 
School, and an inquiry by mail 
came concerning the school, it 

59 



would be far more effective first 
to send the general catalogue in 
which the Plumbing School with 
its costs is simply listed with 
many other schools and classes 
and all the lines of Religious, 
Physical, and general privileges, 
then the next day send to the 
same person the announcement 
of the special school. The gen- 
eral catalogue has opened the 
eyes to the magnitude of the As- 
sociation work, and then the spe- 
cial circular enlarges on the fea- 
ture in which the person is most 
interested just at that time, and is 
most likely to clinch his interest. 
The great mail order houses, 
such as Sears-Roebuck Co., have 
built up their vast businesses 
very largely by the use of omni- 
bus catalogues, containing a de- 

60 



scription and price of almost 
everything under the sun. I 
know Associations that last year 
were in a position to furnish at 
least 200 different features, and 
simply issued a dozen or two little 
leaflets that gave only a trivial 
idea of a great organization. 

It is estimated that the leaflets 
produce practically no effect after 
the year they are issued, while a 
"catalogue" giving a listing of 
many articles or features has an 
effect that reaches over succeed- 
ing years something like this. 

General catalogue advertising 
results: 

First year 65 per cent of total value 

Second year.. 15 
Third year .. 5 
Following years 5 

100 

61 



(< (( (( 



Little special leaflets are seldom 
given the wide or general circula- 
tion that is needed to secure re- 
sults in cities these days, where- 
as a catalogue usually gets a sys- 
tematic distribution. 

Here is a list of some of the 
places where Y. M. C. A. cata- 
logues should be sent or placed 
in the Fall: 

1. To each member. 

2. To gathered list of prospect- 

ive members. 

3. To each subscriber. 

4. To list of prospective sub- 

scribers. 

5. To checked list from City Di- 

rectory. 

6. Have one placed in every re- 

ception room of physicians, 
dentists and lawyers. 

62 



7, Reception and waiting room 

of every business or office 
having same in city. 

8. Have leather binding or mag- 

azine binding put on the 
Association catalogues, then 
place them in all the libra- 
ries and reading rooms of 
the city. 



63 




> 


\ 


♦ 1 


."■>''.. vA^ 




"'•*^^^^^' 


Ajfi^ 



"Like killing two birds with one stone' 



64 



A 



X 

The Fall Campaign 

N Association is like a farm 
— the busy harvest time is 
in the Fall. This is the time to do 
the most effective advertising. 
However, the preparation of this 
advertising should be started ear- 
ly in the Spring and all outlined 
and in hand by the first or middle 
of August. 

There is some value in turning 
the batteries loose all at one time. 

The fall advertising accom- 
plishes two purposes. It lets the 
young men and boys know of the 
Association's advantages, and 
gives the business men of the 
community a big conception of 

65 



the work being conducted and 
thus prepares the way for the 
annual solicitation of current sub- 
scriptions, which can best be done 
early in January. It is like kill- 
ing two birds with one stone. 

This is the actual Fall advertis- 
ing program for a certain Asso- 
ciation last season: 

1. Twenty thousand catalogues of thirty -two 

pages, with halftone illustrations on 
every page. 

2. Five thousand special Educational cata- 

logues of forty-eight pages, giving exact 
and definite information about the work, 
costs, teachers, etc. 

3. Five thousand special Religious depart- 

ment sixteen-page announcements. 

4. Ten thousand illustrated twelve -page 

folders, to be given out and circulated by 
hand in shops and factories of the city. 

5. One thousand two-color illustrated (oj^x 

22-in.) window cards to be placed in 
shops and factories where employees 
will see. 

66 



6. Display advertising in four of the daily 

papers. 

7. Personal process letters sent to list of 

names gathered during the previous four 
or five months, of those who expressed 
interest in some special phase of the 
Association activities. 




''^^/ 



"There is some value in turning the batteries loose 
all at one time" 



8. Window exhibits in leading stores of Physi- 
cal and Educational work and apparatus. 
These exhibits can be made very attract- 
ive and should contain something that 
moves or has life in it. 

67 



9. The photographs of new employees given 
to the press and information about them 
at proper intervals to get best results. 

10. Newspaper news features in respect to 
new lines of work, new apparatus in- 
stalled, definitely planned to be furnished 
the daily press at such a time as will be 
of greatest value in the general campaign. 



68 



XI 

Summer Advertising 

THE day has passed when the 
Association can afford to 
consider practically shutting down 




Ke£PAN£V£ 



its work from one to four months 
during the summer. WTien the 
Secretary sees a young man come 

69 



into the front door with the first 
straw hat of the season then he 
must plan to modify the Associa- 
tion's activities to meet the new 
demands. 

If the work is to be made to go 
all summer, it must be advertised. 
This can be done in many dif- 
ferent ways; install soda water 
fountains, introduce potted 
plants and trees outside and in- 
side the building, see that the 
newspapers are informed about 
every move that is made, organize 
some kind of picnics and hikes 
early in the spring or summer; 
make the Association building the 
rallying point. Have moonlight 
excursions on rivers and lakes, 
organize twilight baseball leagues, 
keep things moving, and keep the 

70 



letters "Y. M. C. A." appearing in 
the daily papers. 

Special membership at reduced 
rate from May to October can 
properly be offered and pushed. 





1^^ ^^^ XI 



4^, 



'Keep the letters Y. M. C. A. appearing" 



The Association can afford to 
give privileges for less money in 
the summer than in the winter. 
These special summer member- 
ships will not interfere, but rather 
aid, in securing full annual mem- 
berships in the fall, providing, of 

71 



course, the Association sees that 
the summer membership man re- 
ceives just what has been prom- 
ised. 



72 



XII 

What to Advertise 

SOME Associations s e e m to 
think the only thing worth 
advertising is something new or 
strange. Others believe they 
could advertise big if they only 




'More farmers will gro to see a prize Berkshire hog than will 
go to see an elephant" 

73 



had something that they do not 
possess. This is all a fallacy. 
The best things to advertise are 
the most common. Are the big- 
gest advertisers flying machines 
and automobiles? Not by a long 
shot. They are oats, wheat, flour, 
overalls, shoes and tobacco. More 
farmers will go to see a prize 
"Berkshire" hog than will go to 
see an elephant. 

The best Association features 
to advertise are not a few fancy 
"Special Schools", but arithmetic, 
penmanship, mechanical drawing, 
the gymnasium, swimming pool, 
shower baths, the Sunday Meet- 
ings, etc. They can always be de- 
pended upon to attract young 
men and boys. Keep hammering 
away on what you have and add 

74 



everything else that you possibly 
can. 

Twenty years ago a certain As- 
sociation was without a gymna- 
sium, a bath room, or an educa- 
tional class. All in the world 
it had was a few wooden chairs, 
a "reading room" (most of the 
publications were contributed), 
and two checker boards, but the 
Secretary secured the use of three 
bill boards on the main street and 
on those bill boards posted the 
first page of every newspaper and 
the cover of every magazine to be 
found in the reading room and 
made a border of first pages of 
"The Young Men's Era", the 
predecessor of "Association Men." 
The attendance at this "wonder- 
ful" reading room more than 
doubled in a week. This was true 

75 



Association advertising. It was 
letting young men know what the 
Association had. 



76 



XIII 

Billboards and Streetcars 

WITHOUT doubt both of 
these methods of advertis- 
ing are effective for some lines of 
business. Billboards are used 




'Billboard advertising for an Association a little 
too steep in price" 

77 



most extensively by theatres, 
liquor and tobacco advertisers. 
Streetcar advertising is patroniz- 
ed most by those lines that have 
a continental market, as Lipton's 
Tea, Uneeda Biscuit, Snyder's 
Catsup, etc. I find that the suc- 
cessful retail stores, including the 
department stores, put their main 
reliance on the daily papers. I 
believe the Association is more 
nearly in the last named class, 
that of retail and department 
store advertisers, than either of 
the other general classifications. 

The day may come when it will 
pay for the Association to use bill- 
boards and streetcar advertising, 
but at present I feel confident that 
as a rule the same amount of 
money placed in newspapers, 

78 



window cards and catalogues, will 
give a larger return. 

I believe that billboard adver- 
tising for an Association is like 
an automobile for the average 
Secretary — a little too steep in 
price. 



79 




^Q^W^Cbi^vlie, 







'A bigger power in the community than the Chief of Police" 



80 



XIV 

Boys' Department 
Advertising 

THE Boys' Department can be 
greatly strengthened by pro- 
per advertising, but perhaps it is 
nearer true in respect to the boys' 
work than other phases of Asso- 
ciation activity that the best possi- 
ble advertising is to get the boys 
to work for other boys. 

To increase the membership, I 
think it can fairly be said that 
membership contests in the Boys' 
Department are not open to the 
same objections that obtain in the 
men's department. In fact, we 
are disposed to think that a mem- 

81 



bership contest once a year in the 
Boys' Department is a good thing. 
It has large value entirely aside 
from the members and money 
that can be secured. Boys are al- 
ways wanting to compete, and 
anything that will arouse them to 
action and to loyalty to their 
team, their club, or their side, has 
decided value. 

This individual, personal, ac- 
tion of the boys will need to be 
supplemented by printed matter. 
Boys' Department printed matter, 
if it is meant to interest the boys, 
can well have some rather crude 
pictures with a little of the ludi- 
crous and comic features. 

Every Boys' Department should 
advertise for at least two or three 
weeks before Christmas the desir- 
ability of a membership ticket in 

82 



the Association for a Christmas 
present. 

If a Hst of boys who naturally 
might be expected to become 
members can be secured, it will 



(^J)o\i ddSStitf 




''0)TneOh!['/(h)oyoo!" 

*'Boys are always wanting to compete" 

be found that a personal process 
letter with the boy's name filled 
in at the top and signed in ink 
at the bottom by the Boys' Secre- 
tary, will get far more attention 
from a boy than it would from a 

83 



man. Boys receive fewer letters 
than their dads and therefore are 
more inclined to take them seri- 
ously. 

A Boys' Secretary who knows 
and calls a large number of boys 




A«fee/ 
/ike' IV I 



"Boys receive fewer letters than their dads" 

by their first names is a bigger 
power in his community than the 
Chief of Police, and he can set 
advertising forces (these boys) at 
work whenever he wants. 
One of the best features of ad- 

84 



vertising in every Boys' Depart- 
ment should be a large bulletin 
board in the boys' lobby or living 
room. This should be neat and 
announcements and advertise- 
ments, pictures and cards should 
be changed continually. Boys 
will read bulletin board announce- 
ments much more than men, par- 
ticularly if they are along the line 
of boy work and boy life. Boys 
become used to looking at bulle- 
tin boards in their schools, and 
when the Association has one 
much better kept up with a little 
more of the humorous and gro- 
tesque appearing on it occasion- 
ally, the bulletin board will be- 
come dear to their hearts and a 
most valuable advertising factor. 
Buttons and badges can many 
times be used to good advantage 

85 



in promoting campaigns of vari- 
ous kinds in the Boys' Depart- 
ment. 




'The sporting pages of the daily papers get a seemingly 
abnormal amount of attention" 



86 



XV 

Physical Department 
Advertising 

USUALLY the Physical De- 
partment in all the cities 
gets more free advertising than 
any other phase of the Associa- 
tion's work. For some unac- 
countable reason, the sporting 
pages of the daily papers get a 
seemingly abnormal amount of 
attention and have more space to 
spare than any other section of 
the paper. These sporting pages 
will be found the easiest place to 
work in Association news, and 
should be used more than they 
are by keen Association officers. 

87 



Physical Department activities 
can always find a place on the 
sporting pages. News on these 
pages is good advertising, for 
boys and many young men turn 
first to the sporting section of the 
daily papers. 

If the gymnasium is overhauled, 
or new apparatus is installed, 
see that it is mentioned on the 
sporting page. Announcements 
of when the gymnasium classes 
start and what they are doing will 
always find space in the papers. 
All the game and athletic life of 
the Association will be gladly 
written up by the sporting re- 
porters of the papers if properly 
presented. 

The most effective way of ad- 
vertising gymnasium classes that 
we have discovered is to get the 

88 



members of the classes each to in- 
vite one friend to a particular class 
session, and for the Association 
to provide a clean gymnasium suit 
for the friend to appear on the 




"Provide a^clean gymnasium suit" 

floor. This suit can either be sold 
the man when he joins, or can be 
washed and put back into stock, 
and it is the cheapest and most 
effective form of Physical Depart- 

89 



ment advertising of which we 
know. 

There is a certain amount of 
advertising value for every Asso- 
ciation to pull off occasionally 
some such stunt as a "Cross Coun- 
try Relay Race," a "Gymnasium 
Circus," a "Rambling and Hiking 
Club," or "Week-end Trips," as 
long as these do not interfere 
with the regular systematic work 
of the department. 

A full schedule of all the classes 
and class hours on a large, sub- 
stantial display card or sign in the 
entrance or lobby of the Associa- 
tion building is a good feature. 
When this schedule is announced 
in the early fall, it should be giv- 
en to the sporting editors of the 
daily papers who can usually be 

90 



depended upon to see that it is 
run in some special issue. 

Some sporting editors are easi- 
ly shown the news value of car- 
tooning prominent business and 




"Prominent men playing basket ball" 

professional men playing games 
like school boys on the gymnasi- 
um floor. 

Every large, successful retail 
business house these days realizes 

91 



the advertising value of specializ- 
ing on some article or feature and 
harping on that. Some restaur- 
ants make a specialty of hot waf- 
fles. A few department stores 
have Friday "surprise sales." This 
principle can be worked in the 
Physical Department by advertis- 
ing the swimming feature strong- 
ly at a certain time. Many suc- 
cessful physical directors believe 
that they can secure more young 
men by emphasizing swimming 
than they can by trying to explain 
about all the various physical de- 
partment activities. 

At another time, wrestling may 
be the thing to put forward. Have 
something going all the time and 
keep talking about it. 

A certain Association had a 
small noon business men's class. 

92 



PLAY BALL 

Indoors at Y. M. C. A. 



Indoor Base.. 

Hand 

Volley 

Basket 

Medicine 



BaU 



Games that make men boys again. 
Join this week. 

Dues $12 year, plus $2 entrance fee. 
Some of the privileges you get for 



$ 




Gymnasiums 
Marble Baths 
Swimming Pool 
Handball Court 
Running Track 
Boxing Room 
Wrestling Room 
Individual and 
Class Instruction 

Comer Sixth and Taylor Streets 

Call and let Secretary show you 
through building. Free illustrated 
catalogue for the asking. 

Four-inch single column newspaper ad. run 
in four daily papers 



93 



The physical director began pro- 
moting it, went onto the floor be- 
fore the class opened, and became 
interested in the kind of exercise 
or game that most interested the 
man or men until the class start- 
ed, put in several original twists 
on the work, and today there are 
two large noon classes requiring 
the gymnasium floor every noon 
in the week and including in the 
membership many of the leading 
business and professional men of 
the city. 



94 



XVI 

Religious Department 
Advertising 

RELIGIOUS Department ad- 
vertising should magnify 
the word CHRISTIAN in the As- 
sociation work and emphasize the 
broadness of the word. 




'Religious department advertisinjr should magnify 
the word Christian" 

95 



The Religious, next to the Phy- 
sical Department, is the easiest 
one of all the many Association 
Departments to advertise. The 
reason for this is, that the papers 
are not afraid there may be some 
financial consideration connected 
with this advertising, as with oth- 
er phases of Association activities. 

Most daily papers run once a 
week a religious section and they 
are usually hard put to get real 
live news for this space. The As- 
sociation employee in charge of 
the advertising should see that the 
religious features of the Associa- 
tion are kept continually to the 
fore in this section. 

Many of the church calendars 
will allow notice or announce- 
ment of the Association meetings, 

96 



and these should be used wher- 
ever available. 

Special religious write-ups from 
the "news feature" point of view 








"Don't be afraid of a little sensationalism" 

should be continually appearing 
in the daily papers. 

If the Bible Classes go on a 
hike, have it written up. Give 

97 



some names; most newspapers 
want names and pictures. These 
must be supplied if space is to be 
secured. 

Don't be afraid of a little sensa- 
tionalism now and then. Of 
course, I do not think it is ever 
necessary to be sacreligious or 
trivial in respect to sacred things, 
but the religious features of the 
Association have a wide range 
these days, of Religious Educa- 
tion, Social Service, Missions, Bi- 
ble Study, Personal work, Social 
activities. Evangelistic meetings, 
and the Association that does not 
see that the religious activities are 
featured in the news columns of 
the daily papers makes a great 
mistake. 

The Association advertising 
constantly great educational, phy- 

98 



sical and other departmental ac- 
tivities and neglecting to adver- 
tise just as aggressively the 
religious feature is making an al- 
most irreparable blunder, not on- 
ly because of the supreme import- 
ance of the work, 
but from a much 
lowerstand- 
point, that o f 
financial sup- 
port from the 
average busi 
ness man who 

m aV not him- "strength of Gibraltar ads" 

himself have any relationship to 
the church. The Y. M. C. A. has 
achieved its present position and 
power because of its being a RE- 
LIGIOUS institution, and because 
it has set out to deliver a charac- 
ter product. If we neglect ad- 




99 



vertising and pushing this most 
vital of all our many features we 
make a most serious mistake. 

There is a lot of good life in- 
surance advertising in the maga- 
zines and daily papers. We have 
all seen the "strength of Gibral- 
tar" ads of the Prudential, yet 
the company does not expect this 
advertising to cause anyone to 
hunt up the offices of their agen- 
cies and ask for a chance to take 
out a policy. The advertising 
simply prepares the way for the 
agent. In other words, life insur- 
ance is that kind of business that 
requires personal presentation. 
The same is true of securing reg- 
istration in Association systematic 
Bible Classes. The only way to 
get students is by personal solici- 

100 



tation. Advertising helps; it pre- 
pares the way for the solicitor, 
be he Secretary, committeeman, 
class or club leader, but Bible 




*Handpicked Watermelons' 



Study students have to be "hand 
picked". In my college town 
there used to be an eccentric char- 
acter who sold watermelons. He 
had an old wagon with the sign 

101 



"Handpicked Watermelons". The 
facts of course are that there are 
no other kind of melons on the 
market. The same is true of 
graded Bible class students in city 
or railroad Associations; they all 
have to be "hand picked". 

There are some kinds of game 
like "snipe" that you can shoot 
into the bunch and trust the bird- 
shot to scatter enough to bag a 
few, but when you are hunting 
for bear you must take definite 
aim if you are to bring down the 
game. 

This is a principle in Religious 
Department advertising — you 
have to take definite aim to get 
your man. You can use birdshot 
and scatter broadcast and still get 
some results advertising the Edu- 
cational and Physical Depart- 

102 



ments, but in the Religious De- 
partment much greater care has to 
be exercised. In other words, you 
must be far more direct and def- 




**When you are hunting for bear you must take definite aim" 

inite in your kind of advertising. 
You do not need so many differ- 
ent pieces of advertising, but it 
needs to have a bigger charge of 

103 



powder, that is, personality, be- 
hind it. 

A successful attempt on the 
part of a certain Association to 
interest professional and business 
men in religious work demon- 
strated this fact. Careful lists of 
eligibles in several professions 
were compiled by members of 
these professions, thus eliminat- 
ing the bulk of the ineligibles. 
These men were carefully circu- 
larized to the number of 475 in 
regard to a lecture class by a 
prominent minister. Two hun- 
dred and twenty enrolled, and 
there was an average attendance 
of 153. Lists of ministers, club 
men, members of men's classes 
are kept, together with records of 
results. As much care is neces- 
sary in making religious depart- 

104 



ment lists as in making lists for 
financial work. It is as easy to 
avoid unnecessary advertising by 
an application of brains as it is 
to pay the bills for it — ^and more 
comfortable. 




'Advertising helps; it prepares the way for the solicitor' 



105 




'Most young men have ambitious dreams. Educational 

advertising points the way for these dreams 

to become realities" 



106 



XVII 

Educational Department 
Advertising 

THE Educational and Employ- 
ment Departments are more 
dependent upon advertising and 
receive more direct benefit from 
it, than any other phase of Asso- 
ciation activities. 

The Educational Department 
lends itself to persistent advertis- 
ing. Its features can easily be 
listed as to subjects and costs. 

The educational privileges usu- 
ally have a basis for a strong 
appeal in that they tend to fit 
young men for better positions, 

107 



higher salaries, and larger advan- 
tages in life. 

Most young men have ambi- 
tious dreams. Educational adver- 
tising points the way for these 
dreams to become realities. 

The argument for educational 
work can be made in a hundred 
different ways. There was a good 
statement in respect to night edu- 
cational work in one of the Fall 
issues of "West Side Men" this 
season. It ran as follows: 

"For most men the impulse to self-expres- 
sion does not exhaust itself in the business of 
their vocation. No healthy man of moral 
aspirations is, or should be, satisfied with 
merely doing a day's work. Having done 
that, most of us are better contented with 
ourselves if we undertake and systematically 
carry through some other line of activity after 
business hours, thus achieving more nearly 
complete self-expression and a satisfied sense 
of capabilities developed and power used." 

108 



A certain Association makes 
this kind of statement of the ob- 
ject of its educational work: 

This feature of the Association activities 
is designed to meet the needs of men who are 
working for promotion, preparing for some 
special vocation, profession or higher educa- 
tional institution, or for those who desire to 
secure a liberal education while engaged in 
some vocational occupation." 

By far the most effective news- 
paper advertising is the news arti- 
cle suggested by the "Educa- 
tional Sunday/' the opening 
and closing of the school year, 
the addition of new courses 
and subjects of study, the election 
of new members to the teaching 
force, the installation of new 
equipment or any other feature 
which marks an incident in the 
work. The daily papers are be- 
coming more and more liberal in 

109 



their allotment of space to the 
educational activities of the Asso- 
ciation. 

The time has now come when 
the Association can enter into its 
own as a city-wide influence in 
shaping local educational policies, 
organizing lines of study for busi- 
ness and professional men and 
installing and equipping labora- 
tories for the advancement of in- 
dustrial sciences. It is not enough 
that such work is being done al- 
ready to a greater or less extent 
in every city, in other institutions. 
It remains for the Y. M. C. A. to 
vitalize the business, the profes- 
sional, and the industrial life of a 
city by infusing into it, through 
these channels, a spirit of altruism 
and Christian ideals. 

110 



Although every Association 
should have some little education- 
al "stunt" or side line in the way 
of so-called special schools, the 
best thing that the educational 




"Y. M. C. A. leading Business" 

department can do is to keep 
hammering on the fundamentals 
among which are arithmetic, pen- 
manship, bookkeeping, drawing, 
and En^ish. 

Ill 



ih 




L 



One of the com- 
paratively i n e X- 
pensive and yet ef- 
fective schemes for educa- 
tional department advertis- 
ing is the "window card," 
which is placed principally 
not in windows, but tacked 
or hung up in shops, mills, 
factories, though, of course, 
put in windows wherever 
possible. In the larger cities 
it is quite difficult to get dis- 
play cards placed in win- 
dows. The larger depart- 
ment and retail stores usual- 
ly have an agreement not to 
allow such cards 
in their windows, 
but there are al- 
ways smaller stores 
and shops that will 

112 




give this privilege. Many business 
houses that will not allow any oth- 
er advertising in their windows 
will consent to the placing of a 
Y. M. C. A. card therein. 

Several successful educational 
departments believe that for the 
same amount of money the win- 
dow card brings larger returns 
than any other form of advertis- 
ing. 

A window card should always 
have some picture on it, and 
should be printed in at least two 
different colors of ink. The addi- 
tional color adds a great deal 
more than the additional cost. It 
should be stiff enough to stand 
if leaned against a wall or any 
article. The complete list of sub- 
jects taught, together with the ex- 
act cost of each, should be printed 

113 



in clear, strong type that can be 

read several feet from the card. 

I have noticed a good many 

Association window cards adver- 




"The people in our town that I see looking into the store 
windows seem to be mainly interested in the 
goods with the cost tags'* 

tising the Educational classes 
giving the list of subjects without 
a word about the cost. The 
people in our town that I see 
looking into the store windows 

114 



seem to be mainly interested in 
the goods with the cost tags. 

Here are two cards advertising 
Educational classes: 



Y.M.C.A. 




Y.M.C.A. 


Day and Night 




Day and Night 


Schools 




Schools 


SUBJECT 




SUBJECT MontiS 


Arithmetic 




Arithmetic $2.00 


Algebra 




Algebra . 3.00 


Bookkeeping 




Bookkeeping 5.00 


German 




German . 5.00 


Mechanical 




Mechanical 


Drawing 




Drawing 5.00 


Plumbing 




Plumbing . 10.00 


Salesmanship 




Salesmanship 8.00 


Shorthand 




Shorthand . 5.00 


Typewriting 




Typewriting 5.00 



The point is that a statement of 
the fees adds 50 per cent to the 
value of the card. 

The biggest advertising asset of 
the Educational work of the Asso- 
ciation is the strong, moral and 

115 



religious atmosphere permeating 
it. Any Association that fails to 
use this fact in its advertising 
loses one of the best appeals 
that can be made in building up a 
student body. 

The two phases of Association 
educational work that have been 
growing the most rapidly the last 
few years have been the "special 
schools" and day departments in 
the larger city Associations. Both 
of these require much advertis- 
ing. In fact, the very success of 
the work is dependent to a large 
extent upon the amount and qual- 
ity of the advertising. 

The remarkable results secured 
through the advertising carried 
on by such educational depart- 
ments as Boston, West Side New 
York, and other Associations of 

116 



the country show what can be ac- 
compHshed by good, persistent 
advertising. 

Many of the larger City Asso- 
ciations are finding that their field 





"Two kinds of plumbers" 

for educatioanl work is not con- 
fined to the city in which their 
particular Association is located. 
If they are conducting a special 
school such as Plumbing, adver- 

117 



tising can at a small expense be 
sent to every plumbing establish- 
ment in the state. As a matter of 
courtesy, of course, it should not 
be sent to those cities where there 
are other Y. M. C. A.'s carrying 
on educational work. The same 
is true in respect to an automobile 
school. Circulars should be sent 
to garages and automobile dealers 
over a wide range of territory. 

Los Angeles, Kansas City and 
other aggressive Associations are 
drawing students from a large 
section of the surrounding coun- 
try. Advertising for these special 
schools may be in the form of 
process letters, catalogues or spe- 
cial circulars. The best methods 
will have to be determined for 
each Association by careful ex- 
periment. 

118 



Y.M.C. A. "^^Af Schools 

SIXTH AND TAYLOR STREETS 

Fee 
3 Mos.to 
Trade Schools 3 years 

Assaying- $ 30.00 

Automobile 50.00 

Carpentry 10.00 

Electricity 15.00 

Forestry and Lumbering 10.00 

Plumbing 15.00 

Business and Professional Schools. 

Accounting $ 150.00 

Bookkeeping 6.00 

Cost Eng. and Quantity Surveying 30.00 

Pharmacy 30.00 

Plan Reading and Estimating 8.00 

Reinforced Concrete Cost 15.00 

Show Card Writing 12.00 

Salesmanship 15.00 

Shorthand 6.00 

Surveying and Drafting 10.00 

Telegraphy and Dispatching 12.00 

Telegraphy (wireless) 50.00 

Some of 50 Other Courses. 

Arithmetic, Algebra or Geometry.! 5.00 

German, French or Spanish 5.00 

Penmanship or English 3.00 

Public Speaking 6.00 

Boys' Elementary School (day)... 12.00 

Boys' Elementary School (night). 4.00 

Call or send for free Illustrated Cata- 
logue, Portland Y. M. C. A. Similar 
schools Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane, San 
Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles. 



Four-inch display ad. run in four daily papers 

119 




"Always have ad. running in the Male Help Wanted column' 



120 



XVIII 

Employment Depart- 
ment Advertising 

THE first essential to the suc- 
cessful conduct of an Em- 
ployment Department is men to 
fill positions. He would be deem- 
ed lacking in judgment who spent 
his time digging post holes with- 
out first securing posts to fill 
them. 

To secure men you must have 
something attractive to offer; then 
display where it will receive the 
greatest publicity. 

During a recent tour of the 
country, embracing twenty of the 
largest cities, an observing Secre- 

121 



tary failed to discover a single 
advertisement in any newspaper 
setting forth to young men the 
opportunities afforded by the Em- 
ployment Department of the 
Young Men's Christian Associa- 
tion and inviting them to avail 
themselves thereof. 

Every Employment Depart- 
ment in a city of any considerable 
size, and particularly in an Asso- 
ciation that has a man giving his 
entire time as Employment Secre- 
tary, should always have an "ad" 
running in the "Male Help Want- 
ed Column" of the daily papers. 

It would be just as consistent 
for a business house to take down 
its sign as for an Employment 
Department to take its "ad" out 
of the "Male Help Wanted Col- 



umn." 



122 



Of course, the ad should be 
changed from time to time. On 
first thought one would think the 
oftener changed the better. Ex- 



"HELf> 
MALEl 




"Running in the Male Help Wanted column" 

perience has shown just the oppo- 
site to be the case in a certain 
Association. This Association has 
tried various "Male Help Want 
Column" "ads'' from time to time. 

123 



Here are a few which secured 
satisfactory results for a while: 

HELP WANTED— MALE 

EVERY young man seeking employment, 
or desiring to better his condition, 
should get in quick touch with the 
Advisory and Employment Secretary ot 
the Y. M. C. A. Special Employment 
membership. During April we placed 
98 men in permanent and 97 men in 
temporary positions. Strangers our 
specialty. Good service, fellowship and 
opportunity await you. Demand for ev- 
ery young man who can do anything 
well. Think twice, and then some, be- 
fore you invest money in any proposi- 
tion. 

HELP WANTED — MALE 

YOUNG man!!! If you can do anything 
well or are qualified for better work 
than you are at present doing, get in 
touch with the Secretary of the Advis- 
ory and Employment Department of the 
Y. M. C. A. Great demand for brains 
in this city and state. During the week 
ending May 21 we received 75 calls for 
employes; placed 51 men in permanent 
positions at salaries ranging from $40 
to $150 per month. Have demand now 
for at least 40 men at salaries of from 
$40 to $150. The only cost to you is 
membership in the Association, which, 
if you are a non-member, can be se- 
cured at a nominal figure. Strangers 
our specialty. Good fellowship, good 
advice, good position awaits you. Think 
twice and then some, before you invest 
money. We can tell you where not to 
put it. 



124 



HELP WANTED— MALE 



YOUNG MAN!!! 

See the 

Advisory and Employment 

Secretary of the 

Y. M. C. A. 

If you desire 

Employment, 

Promotion, 

Advice, 

Friendship. 
Hangr on to your money. 
"AH that glitters is not gold." 
Ask us. 




'Hang on to your money* 

125 



HELP WANTED— MALE 



WHAT HAPPENED IN THE 
Advisory and Employment Department 
of the 
Y. M. C. A. 
during 
November and December: 
273 calls for men. 
245 positions filled. 
224 new members taken in. 
22 membership fees refunded. 
Any fellow, young or middle-aged, 
who can do anything well, or better, 
need not be out of emplosnnent. We 
guarantee employment or a return of 
membership fee. See Secretary, Em- 
ployment Department, Y. M. C. A., 
2d floor. 

YOUNG men seeking employment are 
cordially invited to consult the employ- 
ment secretary of the Y. M. C. A. 
He can send you to it or tell you where 

to find it. 
Over a thousand men placed last year. 
Have immediate call for the following: 
Bookkeeper and assistant cashier, bank 

out of town, $100. 
Two stenographers, city, $65 and $75. 
Bookkeeper and stenographer, out of 

town, $100. 
General agent, fire insurance company, 

$150 and expenses. 
Bookkeeper, lumber, out of town, $75. 
Mechanical draftsman, city. 
Fire insurance solicitor, city. 
Registered pharmacist, out of town, $60. 
Bookkeeper, city, $70. 
Bookkeeper and collector, city, $75. 
First-class bookkeeper, experienced in 

department store, $150. 
Stenographer, out of town, $75 and 

board. 

Y. M. C. A. The friend of the young man 
and stranger. Hearty welcome and 
good counsel are yours without cost. 
Constant call for men who can do 
something well. Special Employment 
Membership assures employment. Af- 
ter you have seen the other fellow, see 
us before you invest money. 



126 



There is one particular "ad'' 
that has always brought results. 
This "ad'' is something like Mr. 
Moody's sermon. Whenever 




"Like Moody's sermon on Sowing and Reaping, 

always sure of results'" 



Moody was holding a series of 
meetings and did not seem to be 
getting results, he would preach 
on "Sowing and Reaping" and 
then was always sure of results. 

127 



This "ad" is not copyrighted 
and has been running, with vari- 
ous modifications, for over two 



INCIDENT 
(One of Many.) 

Office Secretary Employment Department, 
Y. M. C. A. 

Young" man, stranger, seeking employ- 
ment (|20 his total cash asset) — ^If I pay 
you |5 for employment membership, I will 
have only $15 between me and starvation. 

Secretary — If you pay $5 for employ- 
ment membership, you will have the Y. 
M. C. A., with all its resources, between 
you and starvation. 

Result: Young man joined association. 
In less than a week he had satisfactory 
employment. 

Record for nine months ending Sept. 30. 

Call for men 1751 

Positions filled 1316 

Employment membership guarantees 
member will secure employment or re- 
fund of membership fee; gives two 
months* full membership privileges, 10 
months' social privileges and undertakes 
to keep member employed during the full 
term of membership without further 
charfire 

Constant demand for CLERICAL., 
TECHNICAI. AND COMMERCIAL MEN. 

See Secretary Employment Department 
Y. M. C. A. 



years, and the Association that 
runs it feels that it has been 
worth several thousand dollars to 
the organization. 

128 



W. A. Magee, who was for over 
twenty years State Secretary of 
Iowa, used to tell a good "cow 
story" that he said was worth 
over $10,000 to the State Com- 
mittee of Iowa. I understand 
that W. M. Parsons claims that 
he inherited the story and is still 
telling and cashing in on it. There 
are lots of good things that will 
bear repeating. Some Associa- 
tions are so anxious to be original 
in their advertising that they be- 
come foolish, forgetting that 

**We are the heirs of all the ages." 

While Association men are 
sometimes accused of being imi- 
tators, I believe a man should be 
complimented when he finds 
some other Association is making 

129 



a success of a certain method or 
plan, and is willing to adopt it. 

After having secured compet- 
ent men, then comes the matter 
of securing positions. This is 
comparatively easy after having 
demonstrated abilitv to fill them. 
f ,,..^'V vvs^- All properly con- 
^foTi'^'^t ducted Employ- 
ment Depart- 
ments have a list 
of the principal 
employers of the 

JHJ^ IS^'"^ ^ity. From time 
^^^ ^^^ to time post- 

"Securing: suitable positions" j 

cards, announce- 
ments, blotters, personal letters, 
bulletins, etc., should be mailed to 
these employers for the purpose 
of impressing them with the ad- 
vantage they will receive by util- 





130 



izing the service of the depart- 
ment. 

The men themselves after being 
properly coached, if sent out to 
seek their own positions (giving 
the Employment Department as 
reference), form a visible demon- 
stration of the calibre of men 
handled by the Association Em- 
ployment Department and a very 
telling advertisement with the 
public. One Employment Secre- 
tary might be able to see an aver- 
age of ten employers each day. 
Seventy-five men, properly coach- 
ed by the Secretary, could see an 
average of seven hundred and 
fifty employers each day. 

Scrupulous care in furnishing 
employers with men having just 
the requirements desired is the 

131 



highest type of Employment De- 
partment advertising. It is cumu- 
lative in its effect and will build 
up a constituency that is constant 
and ever enlarging. 



132 



XIX 

Association Cafe, 

Restaurant or Cafeteria 

Advertising 

AN Association running an 
eating department, whether 
spa, lunch counter, restaurant, 
cafe or cafeteria, is facing a 
straight business problem. 







The original "Calf "-eteria or self-serving system 

133 



There seems to be general 
agreement that the lunch counter 
and cafeteria or self-serving sys- 
tems are more easily made to pay 
expenses than where there are 
tables with service or waiters. 

The average Association con- 
stituency wants good wholesome 
food, well cooked and a maxi- 
mum amount of it for a mini- 
mum amount of money. This can 
be given by the "self-serving" 
plan better than any other thus 
far devised. 

The backbone of most Associa- 
tion eating departments is the 
dormitory men living in the Asso- 
ciation building. These must be 
kept in mind constantly in con- 
ducting the eating department. In 
most of the larger Associations 
many men are continually coming 

134 



to live in the building, and some 
of them are not even aware there 
is an eating department. Some 








"Special dishes that are'being' served in the 
eating department" 

Associations deliver a man's room 
key to him in an envelope with a 
statement about the cafeteria 
printed on the face of the envel- 

135 



ope, or a card is printed and 
placed in the envelope. 

Many Associations maintain a 
little bulletin board on every floor 
beside the elevator and at the 
head of the stairs. On this bulle- 
tin board special dishes that are 
being served in the eating depart- 
ment should be listed from time 
to time. 

When a general letter of invita- 
tion to some function is being 
sent out to the entire membership 
this opportunity should be taken 
to call attention to the special fea- 
tures of the eating department. 

The best advertising for an As- 
sociation's eating department is 
the quantity and quality of the 
food. Some Associations have 
tried to make this up with music, 
flowers, white linen, and evening 

136 



dress suits for the waiters. This 
does not work. (We beHeve in a 
few flowers.) 

A certain Association cafeteria 
manager from time to time went 




"Music vs. Three more beans on each plate" 

to his General Secretary and sug- 
gested that the Association install 
music, either a small orchestra or 
a music box. The General Secre- 
tary, who thought he was some- 

137 



what of an advertiser, answered: 
"Put three more beans on each 
plate/' 

To secure neatness and clean- 
liness in the kitchen and dining 
room is the eternal job of all 
eating department managers, and 
to obtain it is the biggest kind of 
advertisement. 

The following is a card of a 
certain eating department. It 



A Large Quantity of the Best 
Quality of Food 

Y. M. C. A. Dining Room 

Baked Halibut 10c 
Lamb Stew . . 10c 
Com Beef ... 10c 

Fifty Other Good Dishes Served 



may be placed on an easel at the 
front of the building, in the 
lobby, or in a printed publication. 

138 



A certain Association cafeteria 
advertises as you enter the dining 
room, 'If the food you get does 
not taste just a little better than 
expected, the management \Yill 
appreciate your taking it back to 
the counter and getting something 
else without additional charge." 

Once in a while an Association 
cafeteria management gives away 
something appetizing as mint wa- 
fers, a fresh apple, pear or plum, 
with each order as the person 
passes the checker. This seems to 
build up trade. 



'Gives away 
something: 
appetising' 





'The tricks of Association Advertising are just the opposite 
of those of the magician" 



140 



XX 

The Tricks of 
Association Advertising 

THE tricks of Association ad- 
vertising are just the oppo- 
site of those of the magician. 
He fails unless he "deceives" the 
eye and makes things look differ- 
ent from what they are. The 
trick of Association advertising is 
NEVER TO DECEIVE, but to 
make things look just as they are. 
(1). Seeing the Building. One 
of the best forms of advertising 
that a certain Association has dis- 
covered is running "Seeing the 
Building" parties. When the 
building is thronged at noon or 

141 



from 5 to 8 o'clock in the evening, 
parties of strangers are made up 
by announcing through a mega- 
phone in the lobby that a delega- 
tion is just starting to see the 
building. Almost every an- 
nouncement brings forward sev- 
eral strangers who are in the 
lobby writing, looking up guides 
or directories, or reading, that are 
glad to go through the building. 
This is always a revelation to peo- 
ple who are not especially famil- 
iar with Association work, to see 
the boys' activities, the gymnasi- 
ums, the swimming, the trade 
schools, and the hundred and one 
features that are going on in a 
large modern Association. This 
is the best possible kind of adver- 
tising and nothing quite equals it 
as a member getter. Of course, 

142 




those who take these parties 
through the building need to be 
thoroughly coached so as to give 
out information. The statistics 
of all the departments, how the 
work is administered, and a large 
amount of other interesting and 
Y^^f ^fjHf^ valuable inform- 
ation can be im- 
parted when it 

C^^^^f^^ have the 
keenest a 1 1 e n- 

The grestest trick of all is the 

trick of the Glad-Hand" tlOIl 

(2.) Almost every Association 
at some time in the year sends out 
to especially secured lists process 
letters telling about some particu- 
lar feature, and many times these 
letters say that under another cov- 
er a circular or catalogue is being 
sent. Many advertisers believe 
that it is much better to let this 

143 



process letter go and wait one day 
or sometimes two before sending 
the circular or catalogue. The 
person receiving the letter in 
which reference is made to the 
circular at once wants to see that 
circular, and if it is not delivered 
wonders why. This delay of a 
day or two sharpens the curiosity 
of the person receiving the letter 
so that when the circular or cata- 
logue does come, he gives it more 
attention than he would had he 
received it at the same time as he 
received the letter. 

(3.) A large number of suc- 
cessful Associations delegate one 
or more Secretaries or employ a 
man and assign him the job of 
tacking or hanging an educational 
window card every place in the 
city where men collectively wash, 

144 



such as large stores, offices, fac- 
tories, mills and shops. Many 
secretaries have theories about 
placing advertising. We must re- 
member that it is boys and men 
that count, not theories. 




( 4. ) The larger Associations 
of the Pacific Northwest have for 
a number of years in the educa- 
tional advertising run a sentence 
about as follows: "Similar schools 
will be found in Seattle, Tacoma, 
Portland and Spokane.'' This 
Fall Seattle and Portland have 

145 



extended this in their advertising 
to include also the larger cities of 
California, such as Oakland, San 
Francisco and Los Angeles. The 
trick here is that every Associa- 
tion that is really unselfish can 
try to help other Associations. 
Each Association can in its print- 
ed matter, after telling all the 
good things that it is doing, in a 
line list a number of other Asso- 
ciations located in the same gen- 
eral territory that are doing a 
similar v^ork. If Associations 
generally v^ould do this it would 
be of great value to the brother- 
hood. 

(5.) Announcements and 
booklet covers. Light tinted cov- 
ers are better for temporary an- 
nouncements. They are, as a 
rule, more attractive, but if it is 

146 



desired that a booklet be kept, 
such as an annual catalogue, a 
darker shade is better because it 
does not show dirt or soil and 
not being so common is far more 
likely to escape the waste basket 
for a longer time. 

(6.) In most advertising use 
''lower case" instead of capital 
letters. We are so much more 
used to reading ''lower case" tAT)e 
that the eye seems to take it in 
more readily. Note how much 
easier you can read line (b) than 
line (a). 

ASSOCIATION ADVERTISING 

(b) 

Association Advertising 

(7.) WTiere it is desired to 
make a wide mail circulation of a 
general Association catalogue the 

147 



city directory can be used. A cer- 
tain Association has for fifteen 
years from the city directory 
checked and had addressed a cata- 
logue to every man hsted as hav- 
ing a position such as bookkeep- 
er, clerk, salesman, draughtsman, 
etc., where the name of the firm 
he is with is stated and also that 
he "bds." (boards) or "rms." 
(rooms), but passed over all who 
"res." (resides). The assumption 
being that it is mainly young men 
that board and room while men 
that reside are usually married 
and not so liable to be attracted 
by the Association privileges. 

(8.) People are always inter- 
ested in facts written up in an 
interesting way. Facts are much 
more valuable if they are made 
comparative. Some people go to 

148 



the phrenologist to find out where 
they excel; an Association Sec- 
retary should study the "bumps'' 
in the year book. Almost every 
Association can find some point 
in which it excels, either in its 
state, or in cities of the same size. 
Something like the following 




"Some people go to the phrenologist to find out 
where they excel" 

149 



might even get into the New 
York papers: 

"New York is not usually con- 
sidered much of a religious or 
church city, yet the annual Year 
Book of the Young Men's Chris- 
tian Association, which has just 
been published, shows that there 
are 27,995 members in the Asso- 
ciations of Greater New York, 
which is more than in all the 
Young Men's Christian Associa- 
tions of London (where the or- 
ganization started), Chicago, Phil- 
adelphia and St. Louis combined, 
though the aggregate population 
of these cities is over three times 
that of Greater New York." 

Even the conservative Seattle 
newspapers might be induced to 
print: 

150 



"In the past year there were 
1665 different men and boys in 
Bible Classes in the Seattle Young 
Men's Christian Association. This 
was more than in any other Y. M. 
C. A, in the world," etc., etc. 




**Y, M. C. A. keeping step with the town" 

The Detroit papers would likely 
take the following for a basis of 
an article: 

"If the membership of the De- 
troit Association were lined up 

151 



single file and only two feet al- 
lowed to a man, it would make a 
line of men over two miles long," 
etc., etc., etc. 

(9.) Keep step with the civic 
interests of your city, that is, 
when the city is interested in any 
public function, the Association 
should by its work and the decor- 
ations of the building reveal this 
interest. If there is a flower 
show in the city, have an exhibit 
of those particular flowers in the 
building, be they roses, sunflow- 
ers, dahlias, or what not. If there 
is a fruit show on, have a display 
of that particular kind of fruit in 
the lobby. When a horse show 
is going, get pictures of high bred 
horses. Decorate with the sea- 
sons, Christmas, New Years, Hal- 
lowe'en, Fourth of July, and get 

152 



the papers to talk about these 
decorations. This is a day of ex- 
hibits. Make the Association a 
center for exhibits of all kinds. 
In short, the Association should 
become a kind of active-minded 
chameleon reflecting the colors 
of progressive civic activities. 




"Get the papers to talk" 

153 



PRESS OF 

WELLS a COMPANY 

PRINTERS AND PUBLISHERS 

PORTLAND, OREGON 



/^PR 1 131S 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




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